PRESS RELEASES
Heartland Adds "Miss Potter" To Truly Moving Picture List
January 5, 2007
Indianapolis, IN—Heartland Film Festival® is pleased to honor Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., The Weinstein Company and Phoenix Pictures film “Miss Potter” with its Truly Moving Picture Award. The award recognizes theatrically-released films that exemplify excellence in filmmaking and Heartland’s purpose “to explore the human journey by artistically expressing hope and respect for the positive values of life.” “Miss Potter” joins an elite and ever-expanding list of films to receive the award and be deemed a Truly Moving Picture. |
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"We are very pleased to acknowledge MGM and The Weinstein Company's ‘Miss Potter’ with our newest Truly Moving Picture Award," said Jeffrey L. Sparks, President and CEO of the Heartland Film Festival. "In the spirit of ‘Finding Neverland,’ this enchanting biographical story of Beatrix Potter and her storybook characters will delight children and adults alike."
“Miss Potter” is based on the life of Beatrix Potter, the literary phenomenon of the early 20th Century. At a time when most young women of her class aimed only to make a good marriage, Beatrix became an iconic figure, swimming quietly, but with great fortitude, against the tide. She created a series of books and characters that are as beloved today as they were hundreds of years ago, and since their publication they have never been out of print.
By the time she died in 1943, Beatrix Potter had purchased vast swathes of the Lake District that she left to the then fledgling British conservation trust, the National Trust. That this glorious countryside that inspired her remains as it was in Beatrix Potter’s day for others to enjoy is her bequest to the nation.
MGM, The Weinstein Company and Phoenix Pictures present the David Kirschner Production in association with Isle of Man Film and the UK Film Council. “Miss Potter” is directed by Chris Noonan and stars Renée Zellweger, Ewan McGregor and Emily Watson. The film will open in theaters in limited release on January 5.
“Miss Potter” joins other Truly Moving Picture Award recipients “Amazing Grace,” “Cars,” “Charlotte’s Web,” “Everyone’s Hero,” “Flicka,” “Glory Road,” “Happy Feet,” “The Lake House,” “Lassie,” “Nanny McPhee,” The Nativity Story,” “The Queen,” “Saving Shiloh,” “Shooting Dogs,” “Sophie Scholl – The Final Days,” “Take the Lead,” “Tsotsi,” “The Ultimate Gift” and “We Are Marshall.” Fifty-eight (58) films have been honored since the award’s inception in 2000. To view Heartland’s complete list of Truly Moving PicturesSM visit www.TrulyMovingPictures.org.
Heartland created the Truly Moving Picture Award as a way to honor theatrically-released films that demonstrate the Heartland purpose with excellence, inspiring and enriching lives. Submissions are received directly from studios and producers for consideration. Since the industry decides a film’s success based on the opening weekend box office, Heartland encourages audiences to attend a Truly Moving Picture on its first weekend.
Heartland Film Festival, a non-profit organization, was established in 1991 to recognize and honor filmmakers whose work explores the human journey by artistically expressing hope and respect for the positive values of life. Each October, Heartland screens Truly Moving Pictures from around the world and presents $200,000 in cash prizes and Crystal Heart Awards to the Festival’s top entries. This includes a $100,000 Grand Prize for Best Dramatic Feature underwritten by the Max Simon Charitable Foundation, a $25,000 Award for Best Documentary Feature and a $10,000 Vision Award for Best Short Film underwritten by Vision Racing. The remaining $65,000 is shared among the Crystal Heart and Jimmy Stewart Memorial Crystal Heart Award winners. Heartland has awarded more than $1.6 million in 15 years to support filmmakers in their quest to create Truly Moving Pictures.
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